A grand display of students’ fashion and textile work

• Textile and Apparel Engineering Department of Moratuwa University presents ‘The Grandeur’ exhibition

During a time when many things have come to a standstill in the country, the impact of multiple crises on education is being discussed widely. In such a background, the University of Moratuwa (UoM), and the Textile and Apparel Engineering Department in particular, has given students the opportunity to showcase their work and progress during the past few years, while also giving them valuable exposure and experience that will help them when building their careers.

On 12 July, the department held “The Grandeur”, an exhibition and fashion show, showcasing the work of Year One and Year Two students. Students who organised and also took part in the event shared with Brunch that the experience gained through it, and the challenges faced when carrying out their project work, as well as planning and organising the event.

Rejuvenating the glory of the past

According to Year One Academic Co-ordinator and Senior Lecturer Dr. Achini Ranaweera, the first year students showcased their term three design development work, which included 2D flat work like sketchbooks, moodboards, and technical files, as well as 3D fashion pieces and textile samples. The work was related to their major design realisation one in fashion and textiles projects, titled “Rejuvenate the Glory of the Past”.

“The key intention of this design project was to orientate the student into the integrated, holistic approach that characterises design development within the creative fashion and textile arena,” Dr. Ranaweera said.

She added: “Accordingly, our first-year students have shown the essence of their research, concept development, design development and product development work by taking inspiration from the Kandyan era (up to 1815), which indicated one of the best periods of dress evaluation in the history of Sri Lanka.”

The Year One Academic Co-ordinator commended the students’ full commitment and great level of adaptability to online education, as they showed excellent project outcomes despite challenges due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Sharing information about their work, first-year students explained that the past few years have been difficult, having to study from home, being away from their peers, and struggling with daily power cuts and unstable internet connections. However, they were determined to successfully complete their work.

Speaking about the days leading up to the exhibition, Year One student Shenali Liyanage said that there was a flurry of activity, with the Year One and Year Two students given the responsibility of organising “The Grandeur” under the guidance of their lecturers.

“With the weight of submitting assignments off our shoulders, we were now dealing with a different sort of pressure – but it was a fun sort of pressure, I would say, mixed with excitement and a sense of pride. I personally helped with the promotional flyers and took on the task of compering at the event,” Liyanage said, adding that she is neither an experienced public speaker nor a graphic designer. “But this goes to show how we are given the opportunity to find out what we are capable of and improve ourselves on so many levels at university. Getting to work together with our seniors (Year Two students) was great, and in fact, it was the first time I got to interact with them properly, since we did not have much exposure to university life earlier, due to Covid-19 and the situation afterwards in the country.”

Liyanage went on to say that seeing the final product of the project she had been toiling away at day and night being modelled in front of all the distinguished guests, and then walking down the ramp along with her batch mates as “designers” for the first time felt exhilarating.

She added: “At the exhibition, I had the pleasure of meeting and chatting with students from other departments at UoM, as well as fashion students from other universities, who were fascinated and impressed with what we had pulled off. What struck me the most was how a friend who studies engineering at UoM admitted that he had had a very different idea of what our degree programme is, and that he was surprised to see the skills and hard work it actually requires.”

Batch representative Bimsara Tennekoon said that they only had three months to complete their part of the garment, which was a challenge not only because they are first-year students, but also because it had to be done through challenges like daily power cuts, poor internet, and travel issues. However, they overcame these challenges.

“Being able to finish the project itself was a big achievement for us and then the exhibition was a bonus. To be able to exhibit what we achieved through our hard work is the best feeling we can get as designers, and I thank everyone who contributed to and attended the exhibition,” Tennekoon said.

Shahini Nehara also spoke about the challenges faced when organising an exhibition within such a short time, and amidst various difficulties, but said they did their best with the help of their lecturers. “This was a really great opportunity for me as this was my first time on a ramp and it was a good start to my modelling career. Even though we did not have much experience, I think we did a pretty great job collectively, as models,” Shahini Nehara added.

Year One student Banula Mahabaduge spoke about their experience handling the soundtrack for the exhibition, saying, “Even though it was a brand new experience for me, I was able to do the task well with the help of my lecturers and batch mates. At first, I was a bit nervous, however, after a few rehearsal sessions my nervousness went away, and I was finally able to build up the confidence to do the task that I was responsible for.”

Innovative active-wear

The event gave the Year Two students the opportunity to work in collaboration with MAS Bodyline and Antler, for fashion and textile students respectively, where they catered to four brands: Aritzia, Lululemon, Odlo, and Asics. With fashion and textile students supporting one another, the students came up with impressive and innovative collections of active-wear.

Brunch spoke to a few Year Two students about their work displayed at “The Grandeur”. H. R. Kasun Darshana Bandara Senevirathne explained that their second year final project was done in collaboration with MAS Bodyline. “As an undergraduate student and batch representative, it was a huge experience for us. We learned a lot of things, like how to organise a fashion show, work as a team, lead a team to get better outcomes, maximise the given timeframe, and solve problems,” Senevirathne said. 

He went on to say that the event was a good example for all citizens of Sri Lanka to remember that if there is a will, there is a way. “For the success of our event, there was always a backbone for us – our lecture panel, who pushed our limits to get the maximum,” he said, extending a special thank you to the lecture panel including second year co-ordinator Prabod Munasighe, first year co-ordinator Dr. Achini Ranaweera, and lecturers Suneth Senarathne and Chinthaka Dharmakeerthi, as well as all non-academic staff.

When asked how the exposure from events like this will help students with their career, Senevirathne said, “After the end of the second year, we have to find industrial placements. So the event gave us a huge opportunity to showcase our talents as we had some of our placement interviews that day,” he said, adding that in addition to their project work, students also got the opportunity to showcase organising, presenting, and modelling skills.

Describing it as a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate their academic success during this difficult time, Hansaka Thennakoon said: “We had the opportunity to experience, plan and work with everyone to complete the event. Additionally, we had the chance to develop as event planners and gained experience by successfully organising a fashion event.”

Dhananjani S. Kempitiya shared that students, lecturers and staff equally contributed to organising the event within a short period of time. “As students, we got hands-on experience of organising a runway show and fashion exhibition. Our colleagues even modelled for the show. It was such an eye-opening event for everyone,” Kempitiya said, adding: “As much as this is an occasion for us to demonstrate our talents to the industry, it is a chance for them to see our creations and open up careers for us. It is like a bridge that aids the undergraduate to cross to the industry.”
Dreams of weaving

A PhD project titled “Dreams of Weaving” was also displayed at “The Grandeur”. The project was directed by Dr. Sumith Gopura and Dr. Ayesha Wickramasinghe, with Dilmini Yasara Munasinghe as research assistant. The project looked at a creative practice-led approach to handloom product development in Sri Lanka using artisans’ socio-emotional identities.

The abstract of the project, as shared by Dr. Gopura, explained that amidst the contemporary global trends of hyper-localised and sustainable fashion, craft-based industries have been given substantial importance in recent times. Having realising the competence of the handloom weaving industry in Sri Lanka within the global fashion industry, the research proposed a new product development approach using the socio-emotional identities of the handloom artisans. A total of 27 handloom artisans from three provinces were interviewed and observed as part of the qualitative research.

“The study affirms the need for acknowledging the handloom artisans in Sri Lanka and adapting artisan-oriented approaches in future product development. These findings are also valuable in new product development for the handloom weaving industry in countries sharing the same industry attributes in the South Asian region,” the study states.